'Petrov backing to secure Caterham seat'

2013-01-10 08:36:00

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Vitaly Petrov, a favourite with bookmakers like Paddy Power, is reportedly set to retain his Caterham seat although the deal won't be confirmed until all the sponsorship money has been paid to the team.

Although Caterham were rumoured to be making an announcement on Charles Pic's 2013 team-mate late last week, the team remained silent.

According to reports in Finland it was because the backmarker outfit was still considering "all options."

However, other sources now claim the team has finally come to a decision.

Turun Sanomat reports that Caterham's second seat will go to Petrov but that the deal will not be concluded until the "required sponsorship money has been paid into the team's account."

The article added that although Bruno Senna and Luiz Razia, who had both been backed to take the seat by people who bet on F1, came to the negotiating table with hefty sponsorship behind them, they were ruled out.

The reason for this was that Caterham felt neither driver had the experience needed to lead the team, which already has one inexperienced driver in Pic.